News releases

February 07, 2022

Sun Life supports UNICEF’s COVID-19 vaccination program in Indonesia and Vietnam

Hong Kong, February 7, 2022 - Sun Life Financial Inc. (TSX: SLF) (NYSE: SLF) today announced it has donated CA$250,000 to UNICEF to support the International ACT-A / COVAX Emergency Response. The donation will help to fully vaccinate approximately 51,975 people across Vietnam and Indonesia.

UNICEF is the global leader in vaccine distribution, helping to turn COVID-19 vaccines into vaccinations by providing critical logistical support, including delivery of PPE materials, cold chain storage, equipment transportation, and training of health workers. UNICEF’s goal is to administer 4.1 billion COVID-19 vaccine doses to countries around the world, to achieve a population coverage of 70 per cent, in low- and middle-income countries by the end of 2022.

In Indonesia, UNICEF is supporting the government in strengthening the cold chain for incoming Pfizer doses. Sun Life’s donation will be directed towards the delivery and installation of the ultra-cold freezers for this vaccine. Three ultra-cold chain freezers can safely store 1 million doses of vaccine. “We support the government in ensuring the Indonesian public receive the COVID-19 vaccine,” said Elin Waty, President Director, Sun Life Indonesia. “We believe through collaboration with UNICEF, we can help the government in reaching its target in remote areas and ensure optimal distribution.”

“UNICEF welcomes the contribution from Sun Life, which will help to ensure that even those in the hardest to reach communities can benefit from the COVID-19 vaccines,” said UNICEF Indonesia Representative a.i. Robert Gass. “Indonesia is making great progress to bring an end to the pandemic.”

In Vietnam, Sun Life’s donation will help to fund access to vaccinations for communities in 35 remote provinces. “Sun Life is committed supporting the rapid and full roll-out of vaccines to protect Vietnamese people across the country,” said Sun Life Vietnam Chief Executive Officer, Luc Nhon Ly. “Through our partnership with UNICEF, we want to offer our support so that the vaccination program can reach as much of the population as possible.”

“UNICEF supports the Ministry of Health in Vietnam in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, including strengthening the cold chain, improving diagnosis and treatment, building capacity of health sector staff, ensuring the equitable roll out of vaccination, and communicating on the importance of vaccination. We would like to thank Sun Life for their valuable contribution to UNICEF’s COVID-19 efforts in Vietnam,” said UNICEF Vietnam Deputy Representative Lesley Miller.

About Sun Life
Sun Life is a leading international financial services organization providing insurance, wealth and asset management solutions to individual and corporate Clients. Sun Life has operations in a number of markets worldwide, including Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Japan, Indonesia, India, China, Australia, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia and Bermuda. As of September 30, 2021, Sun Life had total assets under management of $1.39 trillion. For more information, please visit www.sunlife.com.

Sun Life Financial Inc. trades on the Toronto (TSX), New York (NYSE) and Philippine (PSE) stock exchanges under the ticker symbol SLF.

Note to editors: All figures in Canadian dollars

Media Relations Contact:
Sarah James
Head of Communications, Asia, Sun Life Financial
Corporate Communications
T: +852 2918 3828
M: +852 6021 5797
sarah.james@sunlife.com

 

SOURCE Sun Life Financial Inc.